Manchester
United

Manchester United - Introduction

Manchester United is one
of the most famous football clubs in the World. Based in the City of Manchester
in the North-west of England the football club has a rich, colourful and,
at times, a tragic history. Manchester United can trace it's roots all
the way back to 1878 when the club was formerly called Newton Heath but
it was in the last decade of the twentieth century that the club firmly
established itself as a truly global sporting phenomenon.

Manchester United History

Manchester United began
life in 1878 in the guise of Newton Heath L & Y R Football Club. It
was the works team of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway depot and played
home games on a small dilapidated pitch on the North Road in Manchester.

Newton Heath played in
jerseys that were half green and half gold - colours that were adopted
by groups supporting the campaign for the removal of the American Glazer
family as owners of Manchester United early in the 21st century. In 1893
the club switched it's home venue to Bank Street in Clayton.

In the first few years
of the club's existence the Heathens, the nickname for Newton Heath, tasted
success reaching the final of the Manchester and District Cup on five
separate occasions in the 1880's. By 1892 the club had joined The Football
Leagues Second Division and had become independent from the rail
depot and was now known as Newton Heath FC. In 1885 the club turned professional.

Having had a brief two
year stint in the First Division, by 1902 the Newton Heath was languishing
in the shadow of near neighbours Manchester City and was teetering on
the edge of bankruptcy. Action was needed to save the club from extinction.
Through a bizarre twist of fate, that involved a St Bernard dog owned
by Heathens captain, Henry Stafford, going missing and somehow finding
it's way into the hands of a successful Manchester business man John Henry
Davies, Stafford had a fateful meeting with Davies.

Manchester United - Born on 28 April 1902

This chance meeting led
to John Henry Davies and a group of business men investing £2,000
into the club. Davies became club president and decided to change the
name of the club to broaden it's appeal. Before Manchester United was
decided upon other names including Manchester Celtic were considered.
An immigrant from Italy called Louis Rocca came up with the ultimate name
and on the 28th of April 1902 Manchester United football club came into
existence. At this time the club also decided to adopt the red and white
strip that we recognise today.

Manchester United - The Early Years

In it's first season playing
as Manchester United the club finished in fifth place in the Second Division
in the 1902/03 season. After this former Burnley manager, Earnest Magnall,
was appointed as team manager and he led United to third place in the
following season. Magnall signed a number of players to boost the quality
of player at the club and in the 1905/06 season Manchester United won
promotion to the First Division.

Manchester
United Win the League for the First Time

In October 1906 Magnall
signed the legendary Billy Meredith form Manchester City. This proved
to be an inspired signing. Despite finishing in a disappointing eight
place in the league Meredith had begun to find some good form in the latter
half of the season with his new playing colleagues. He started the 1907/08
season as he had finished the last - by scoring in a winning performance.
Manchester United won it's first league title that season a full nine
points clear of second placed Aston Villa. United followed this up by
winning the FA Cup for the first time in 1909 beating Bristol City 1-0
in the final at Crystal Palace. Inside forward Sandy Turnbull scored the
winning goal after a shot by Harold Halse rebounded off the crossbar.

Manchester United Move
to Old Trafford

In 1908 John Henry Davies,
through the Manchester Brewery Company, bought the land on which Old Trafford
would be built. The purchase price was £60,000. The brewery leased
the land to the club and work commenced on building the stadium under
architect Archibald Leith. By the year 1910 Manchester United had moved
to Old Trafford and had said goodbye to Bank Street. This was just as
well as two days before the first match at Old Trafford a wooden stand
at the old ground had blown down in high winds. In front of a capacity
80,000 fans on 19 February 1910 Manchester United played it's first match
at Old Trafford against North-west rivals Liverpool
FC. It was a fitting and exciting match to grace the new stadium but
unfortunately for United, Liverpool won the tie 3 - 4. Manchester United
won the First Division title for the second time in the 1910/1911 season,
the first full season at Old Trafford.

Manchester United Go Over 40 Years Without
Winning the League Again

Disappointingly Manchester
United finished in thirteenth position in the league in the next season
having lost more matches than won. Manager Ernest Bagnall came under a
lot of criticism. Having delivered two league titles for United such criticism
didn't sit easy with him and he did the unthinkable - he left Old Trafford
to go to manage close rivals Manchester City. To this day Ernest Bagnall
is the only man to have managed Manchester United and Manchester City.

United appointed former
club chairman John Bentley in place of Magnall. Bentley in turn was replaced
by Jack Robson whose managerial term was interrupted by the First World
War. Robson died of pneumonia in January 1922 and United were relegated
to the Second Division.

John Chapman took up the
reins at Old Trafford and it took him three seasons to win promotion to
the top flight. Chapman helped United to solidify it's position in the
First Division but in October 1926 the English FA suspended John Chapman
for improper conduct although the precise reason was never made public.

Manchester United Faces Bankruptcy

Chapman was temporarily
replaced by the only player/manager that Manchester United ever had -
Clarence 'Lal' Hilditch. Chapman's permanent replacement was Herbert Bamlett.
Following relegation to the Second Division in the 1930/31 season - United
conceded 115 goals that season - Bamlett was replaced by Walter Crickmer.
For the first match the next season a mere 3,500 fans turned up to support
the team and things did not improve as the season wore on. Funds were
drying up, the players were not getting paid, and Manchester United faced
bankruptcy during the 1931/32 season.

Cheshire businessman James
Gibson, who made a fortune manufacturing army uniforms, saved the club
by investing £30,000 thereby becoming the chairman of Manchester
United. Crickmer was replaced by Scotsman Scott Duncan who had money to
spend on players. However United were almost relegated to the Third Division
in the 1933/34 season only escaping by beating Milwall 2-1 on the last
day of the season. Following more promotion/relegation yo-yoing between
the First and Second Divisions Duncan was replaced temporarily by Walter
Crickmer in November 1937. Crickmer's main claim to fame on the football
field is that he signed the great
Irish footballer Johnny Carey.

Old Trafford Bombed During World War
II

World War II interrupted
English domestic soccer in 1939 and Division One football did not resume
until the 1946/47 season. Despite the lack of football, Old Trafford did
see some action during the war years when the stadium was badly damaged
in a German air raid on 11th March 1941. It would take until 1949 before
the stadium was restored and there was a sense of rebirth of Manchester
United with the arrival of Scotsman Matt Busby as club manager. The arrival
of the great Busby presaged the delivery of the First Division league
title for the first time in more than forty years and some of the most
momentous occasions in the history of Manchester United Football Club.

Manchester United - The Matt Busby Era

Matt Busby had a relatively
successful football career playing for United's local rivals Manchester
City and Liverpool. Chairman James Gibson appointed Matt Busby as manager
of Manchester United in 1945 on a five year contract. One of his first
decisions was to appoint Johnny Carey as team captain. A position he would
hold until Carey retired in 1953. Busby also brought in Welshman Jimmy
Murphy as his assistant. In Busby's first season Manchester United finished
second to Liverpool in Division One and went on to beat Blackpool in the
FA Cup final in the next season. This was followed by two second place
and one fourth place finishes in the First Division.

This was a level of consistency
never before enjoyed by Manchester United and delivery of a Division One
title seemed inevitable. In the 1951/52 season Manchester United won the
First Division title for the first time in the Busby era - forty-one years
since the last time the club had won the title. United went on to win
the title again in 1955/56 and 1956/57. Allied to these high profile successes
by the senior team Matt Busby was building for the future at underage
levels. Manchester United won the FA Youth Cup on five successive years
from 1953. Some notable players that came through the underage set up
included Jackie Blanchflower, Duncan Edwards, Liam Whelan and Bobby Charlton.
The Busby Babes era had arrived.

Matt Busby's European Ambitions

Despite some scepticism
within the English League and amongst other clubs Matt Busby set his sites
on European domination. UEFA had held the inaugural European Champions
Cup competition in the 1955/56 season which had been won by Real Madrid.
Chelsea had been denied the opportunity to enter the competition by the
Football League secretary Alan Hardaker. Busby recognised the promise
of such a competition and insisted that United would enter the 1956/57
competition.

England's first foray into
the European Cup ended up in a 5 -3 loss by Manchester United to eventual
winners, and existing holders, Real Madrid. Nevertheless United and Busby
had made their mark on Europe by scoring 21 goals in eight matches. Busby's
appetite had been really whetted for European football and having retained
the First Division title he relished the prospect of having another go
at the competition in that fateful 1957/58 season.

Munich Air Disaster for Busby Babes

In 1957 the Busby Babes
began their European Cup campaign in a preliminary round two-legged match
against Shamrock Rovers
of Ireland. On his return to his native Dublin Liam
Whelan score two goals in a 0-6 victory for United. Busby guided his
young team through the next rounds of the competition right through to
the quarter finals against Red Star Belgrade in the former Yugoslavia.
United won the first leg 2-1 at Old Trafford and successfully made it
through to the semi-finals of the European Cup by virtue of a 3-3 draw
in Belgrade. Only AC Milan stood in the way of a first European Cup final
meeting with Real Madrid.

On the 6th February 1958
BEA flight 609 took off from Belgrade with Matt Busby and his young Manchester
United team on board. The average age of the Busby Babes on board was
just 24. The aircraft had to stop off in Munich's Riem airport to refuel
for the final leg to Manchester. In wintery conditions including falling
snow and slush on the airport runway the pilot had made two failed attempts
to get airborne. On the third attempt the aircraft overshot the runway,
hit a house, then struck another building at which point the plane burst
into flames.

The Munich air crash claimed
the lives of 23 people including two passengers, eight journalists, three
United staff - former manager Walter Crickmer, chief coach Bert Whalley,
and trainer Tom Curry.

The Manchester United players
that lost their lives as a consequence of the Munich air disaster were,
Geoff Bent, Roger Byrne, Eddie Coleman, Duncan Edwards, Mark Jones, David
Pegg, Tommy Taylor, and Ireland's Billy Whelan.

The Munich air crash was
a real tragedy for those killed and injured, and for their families and
friends. It was also a tragedy for Manchester United, a club that looked
set fair to dominate English and European football for years to come.
Matt Busby who was in the process of establishing a football empire now
lay seriously injured in a hospital bed and the heart of his young team
had been ripped from the club. Busby's assistant Jimmy Murphy took charge
of United until the manager's return. United's first match after the Munich
air disaster was a fifth round FA Cup match against Sheffield Wednesday
less than two weeks after the crash. Surprisingly United won that match
3-0 and went on to reach the final only to lose 2-0 to Bolton Wanderers.
Unsurprisingly United succumbed 5-2 on aggregate to AC Milan in the semi-final
of the European Cup although United did win the first leg 2-1 at Old Trafford.
United finished the First division campaign in ninth position having won
just two of the remaining 14 matches after the crash.

Manchester United Rebuilds
- The Next Busby Era

Despite finishing in second
place behind Wolverhampton Wanderers in the next season, and then second
to Burnley in 1960/61, Busby knew that Manchester United needed very significant
rebuilding. No club, not even United, could withstand the kind of losses
experienced in Munich without undergoing a period of rehabilitation. Busby
began the rebuilding from within in an attempt to generate a new crop
of young talent. He supplemented this by buying in established talents
also, including Cork's Noel Cantwell from West Ham David Herd from Arsenal.
Belfast's George Best was emerging through the ranks and Matt Busby also
signed Scotsman Denis Law from Italy's Torino in 1962 for a record signing-on
fee of £115,000. Success wasn't long coming as Manchester United
won the FA Cup final in 1963 beating Leicester City 3-1 at Wembley. United
had a very poor league campaign finishing in 19th position and losing
20 out of 42 matches.

The next season the Red
Devils made it to the semi-finals of the Inter-City Fairs Cup losing out
2-1 to Hungary's Ferencvárosi in a play-off match. More importantly
United reclaimed the First Division title season on goal difference from
Leeds United. And so Manchester United and Matt Busby renewed their European
Cup challenge in 1965. United lost out to Partizan 2-0 in a poignant return
to Belgrade in the first leg of the European Cup semi-final. Despite a
1-0 win at Old Trafford once again United exited a European competition
at the semi-final stage. Manchester United qualified for the European
Cup competition for the 1967/68 season by virtue of winning the league
ahead of second-placed Nottingham Forest. The 1968 European Cup Final
was scheduled to be played at Wembley Stadium in London.

Manchester United Win the European
Cup

While Busby was making
progress on the pitch the club had been developing in other ways as new
owner Louis Edwards redeveloped the north and east stands in preparation
for the 1966 World Cup. The redevelopment included the first private boxes
at any English football ground. Despite domestic league and cup success
so quickly after the tragedy that was Munich, and the enhanced facilities,
Matt Busby still craved success at European level. The 1967/68 European
Cup began with a routine, if uninspired, 4-0 victory over Hibernians of
Malta. In the second round United beat Sarajevo 2-1 on aggregate. In the
quarter-finals the Reds met Polish side Górnik Zabrze and despite
losing the second leg in Chorzów 1-0 United had done enough in
the first leg at Old Trafford to make it to the next round. It was a somewhat
fortunate 2-0 victory that came courtesy of an own goal and a last minute
goal from Brian Kidd.

In the semi-final Manchester
United gained sweet revenge over Real Madrid when they beat the Spanish
side 4-3 on aggregate. Carrying a slender 1-0 lead from the first leg
at Old Trafford United looked to be heading out of the competition at
half time as they trailed 3-1 on the night and 3-2 on aggregate. In front
of a crowd of 120,000 at the Bernabeu United achieved the first part of
Matt Busby's dream by scoring two goals without reply and so made it to
the European Cup final for the first time in the club's history. Just
a decade after the club had been sundered by those tragic events in Munich.

1968 European Cup Final at Wembley
Stadium

On the 28th May 1968 at
Wembley Stadium the second great team created by Matt Busby lined up to
take on Portuguese champions Benfica. Portugal's standard bearers had
made it to the final largely courtesy of six goals from the great Eusebio
and posed a significant obstacle to the fulfilment of Busby's European
dream. Following a 0-0 stalemate in the first half United legend Bobby
Charlton grabbed the lead for the Red Devils after 53 minutes through
a rare headed goal from the United captain. Benfica remained undeterred
and just over twenty minutes later had achieved parity through a Jaime
Graca goal. The 90 minutes ended with the teams all square at 1-1. Extra
time in the European Cup final loomed and so it boiled down to 30 minutes
of football to secure Manchester United's Holy Grail.

Two minutes into extra
time and as the Benfica central defender struggled to control a punt from
United goalkeeper, Alex Stepney, the mercurial George Best pounced. Best
broke clear and rounded Jorge Henrique in Benfica's goal and coolly slotted
home. Two further quick goals from Brian Kidd and Charlton ensured that
there was no way back for Benfica. Matt Busby and Manchester United were
complete. The journey from a small dilapidated pitch on the North Road
in Manchester, right across Europe, and finally to Wembley Stadium in
London Manchester had climbed and conquered the peaks of English and European
football. It had taken 90 years but at last Manchester United had reached
the pinnacle of European football. A truly fitting tribute to those that
had died and been injured in Munich just ten years earlier.

Somewhat predictably the
next season was something of an anticlimax for the club and after 24 years
at the helm Matt Busby resigned as manager of Manchester United in 1969.
He remained on as a director of the club.

The Post-Busby Era at Manchester United

Frank O'Farrell Appointed
Manchester United Manager

The 'Old Man' as
Bobby Charlton affectionately calls him had left an amazing legacy but
also a long shadow behind him - especially for any manager taking up the
reins at Manchester United. Former Red Wilf McGuinness assumed control
but was sacked in December 1970 following some indifferent performances.
Busby returned briefly but resumed his role as director upon the appointment
in 1971 of the only Irishman to ever manage Manchester United - Frank
O'Farrell.

Busby hand-picked the Corkman
based upon his performances as manager of Leicester City. O'Farrell was
handed a five year contract but only lasted in the job for eighteen months.
His task was made particularly difficult because he inherited an ageing
team that was in decline and he found it difficult to effectively manage
an increasingly wayward George Best. Despite a very encouraging start
to his managerial career with United O'Farrell could not escape the Busby
influence with some of the older players. Within 15 months of Busby describing
Frank O'Farrell as his "best ever signing" the former
manager drew a close to O'Farrell's Manchester United career. O'Farrell
was quoted as saying "...Busby obviously felt that he could have
done a better job; if that was the case then he should have stayed on
as manager himself instead of appointing me."

Tommy Docherty Appointed
Manchester United Manager

Following Frank O'Farrell's
dismissal in December 1972 Scotsman Tommy Docherty was appointed manager
of Manchester United. Despite avoiding relegation in the 1972/73 season,
without the now-departed Denis Law and Bobby Charlton Docherty could not
repeat the feat in the next season. Following one season in the Second
Division came roaring back into the First Division with a swashbuckling
style of play that saw United finish third in the league. Despite beating
arch-rivals Liverpool in the 1977 FA Cup final Tommy Docherty was fired
from the position of Manchester United manager due to an extramarital
affair with United physio Laurie Brown's, wife Mary.

Dave Sexton Appointed Manchester United
Manager

QPR's Dave Sexton was appointed
manager of Manchester United for the 1977/78 season. Results did not improve
and First Division tenth and ninth place finishes were the best that Sexton
could manage in his first two seasons. A losing FA Cup final appearance
against Arsenal in 1979 and a runners-up position to Liverpool in the
1979/80 season could do nothing to mask the fact that United were not
likely to make the breakthrough required by the fans. This was borne out
by an eight place finish in the 1981/82 season and Dave Sexton was sacked
from his position as Manchester United manager on 30th April 1981 after
four seasons.

Off the field chairman
Louis Edwards died of a heart attack in 1980 to be replaced by his son
Martin Edwards.

Ron Atkinson Appointed
Manchester United Manager

Following on from Sexton
Manchester United appointed the brash and colourful Ron Atkinson as manager
of the club. 'Big Ron' made major waves in the transfer market by signing
Bryan Robson for a British transfer record of £1.5m. He also signed
Frank Stapleton to add to existing pool of Irish players at Old Trafford
that also included Norman Whiteside, Kevin Moran, and Paul McGrath. Despite
some very impressive form in the cup competitions, including victories
in the FA Cup in 1983 and 1985 (when Kevin Moran became the first player
ever sent off in an FA Cup final), the Red Devils simply could not seem
to break the Merseyside hold on the League title. Despite going 15 league
matches unbeaten, including 13 wins, in the 1985/86 season Ron Atkinson
was dismissed as Manchester United manager.

Alex Ferguson Appointed Manager of Manchester
United

Following his hugely impressive
success in Scotland with Aberdeen in breaking the Rangers / Celtic domination
and by beating Real Madrid in the European Cup Winners Cup final, Alex
Ferguson was an obvious choice to manage United. Having tried five different
managers following the hugely successful Busby era Manchester United had
failed to win the league title since 1967. The appointment of another
Scotsman in 1986 was widely welcomed. Especially as the league had come
to be dominated by bitter North-west rivals Liverpool.

In his first season Ferguson
did not make any sweeping changes or any major signings but rather concentrated
on ensuring United avoided relegation with existing resources. Following
that Ferguson imposed his stamp on the club, getting rid of some players
and signing others, and applying his own tactics. Results improved and
Manchester United finished in second place in the league in the 1987/88
season. Over the next couple of seasons Ferguson failed to provide the
League title that the United fans craved. It is widely accepted that it
was Ferguson's success in the FA Cup in 1990 that save him from the sack.
Because of his significant expenditure in the transfer market and his
decision to let the popular Irishmen Norman Whiteside and Paul McGrath
leave the club Ferguson was under intense pressure from the fans and the
media. Speculation was rife that if United had lost to Nottingham Forest
in the third round of the FA Cup on 7 January 1990 the Alex Ferguson would
have been sacked by the Manchester United board. In a less than convincing
United performance Mark Robins scored the goal that is widely accepted
to have saved Alex Ferguson's job as Manchester United manager.

Alex Ferguson Wins First Trophy with
Manchester United

United went on to win the
FA Cup in 1990 beating Crystal Palace 1-0 in a replay. Lee Martin scored
the winning goal thus buying Ferguson more time. The FA Cup victory meant
that United were back in European competition in the Cup Winners Cup in
the 1990/1991 season. Despite yet another lacklustre league performance
United's thrilling victory over Barcelona in that European competition
meant that Ferguson could claim that his Manchester United team was making
progress. The following season United finished second in the League behind
Howard Wilkinson's Leeds United. Manchester United also won the League
Cup for the first time ever that season. Ferguson had now won silverware
in that last three seasons and he was making progress in the League. The
progress curve was arcing upwards and his youth policy was also beginning
to bear fruit as a teenager called Ryan Giggs burst on to the scene at
Old Trafford.

Alex Ferguson's Manchester United Wins
the League for the First Time

Ferguson's and United's
big breakthrough occurred in the 1992/1993 season - the inaugural season
of the newly formed Premier League. United were competing strongly in
the League but Ferguson caught a real break when, unbelievably, Leeds
United agreed to sell Eric Cantona to the Reds in December 1992. This
injection of Gaulic flair was the last piece of the jigsaw that Ferguson
required to turn United from nearly-men into League winners. After 26
years another Scotsman, Alex Ferguson, delivered the League title for
United - the first since the Matt Busby era.

Manchester United Dominate the Premier
League in the Nineties

Once the League had been
won once the floodgates opened for Ferguson and his team. With his crop
of home-grown talent supplemented by some fantastic signings Ferguson's
Manchester United went on to dominate English domestic football in the
1990's. During that decade United won the League five times, the FA Cup
four times, and the League Cup once. Following on from his early domestic
success Ferguson set his sights on emulating Matt Busby by delivering
Champions League success. With this in mind he signed young Irishman Roy
Keane from Nottingham Forest as a natural successor to Bryan Robson.
Ferguson paid a then British record fee of £3.75m for Keane.

Alex Ferguson's Manchester United Win
the Champions League

Manchester United's first
foray into the top flight European competition since the late 1960's ended
in disappointment as the Red Devils crashed out in the second round losing
on the away goals rule to Turkey's Galatasary. It wasn't until the 1996/97
Champions League that United made any significant progress in the competition.
Ferguson's charges lost 2-0 in the semi-finals to eventual winners Borussia
Dortmund. In 1999 Alex Ferguson finally equalled Matt Busby's European
achievement. It was a season that United also won the Premier League and
the FA Cup. United had arrived in Barcelona for the final courtesy of
an unbelievable and selfless performance in the semi-final by Roy
Keane against Juventus.

In one of the most amazing
comebacks in European football history United scored two late, late goals
by Teddy Sherringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, to snatch a 2-1 victory
from the jaws of defeat at the hands of Bayern Munich. Famously Ferguson
quipped immediately after the match "Football - bloody hell!"
to sum up the momentous events of the last minutes of the final. At last
Ferguson had matched the achievements of his legendary predecessor Matt
Busby.

Alex Ferguson and Manchester United
in the 21st Century

Ferguson and Manchester
United began the new millennium as they had ended the last - by winning
the 1999/2000 and 2000/ 2001 Premier League titles. Despite the emergence
of Chelsea, funded by billionaire Roman Abramovich, as a force in the
League Manchester United won a further four League titles, the FA Cup
in 2004, the League Cup in 2006 and 2009, and the Champions League again
in 2008. The latter final was held in Moscow and Manchester United defeated
arch-rivals Chelsea 5-4 in a penalty shoot-out following a 1-1 draw.

In the latter stages of
Ferguson's career as manager of United Manchester City emerged as title
contenders, as billionaire Sheikh Mansour bankrolled "the noisy
neighbours". City's challenge peaked, during the Ferguson era,
as the blue half of Manchester claimed the 2011/12 Premier League title
on goal difference courtesy of a last minute goal by City striker Sergio
Kun Aguerro in the last match of the season against QPR.

This loss on goal difference
really hurt Ferguson and he vowed that it wouldn't happen again. To ensure
this he signed Dutch striker Robin van Persie from rivals Arsenal in the
Summer of 2012. On cue van Persie delivered 25 goals as United reclaimed
the Premier League title by a wide points margin from Manchester City.
Yet another example of Ferguson's determination and insatiable appetite
for success.

In the program notes for
United's second last home match of the 2012/13 season Ferguson declared
his intention to remain on as manager for the foreseeable future. Three
days later Alex Ferguson announced his retirement as manager of Manchester
United on Wednesday 8th May 2013. Despite the fact that Ferguson was 71
and had spent almost 27 years managing United this still came as a great
surprise and began an intense, but brief, period of speculation about
who would succeed Alex Ferguson.

During his time as manager
of Manchester United Alex Ferguson won 13 Premier League titles, two Champions
Leagues, five FA Cups, four League Cups, one European Cup Winners Cup,
one UEFA Super Cup, one Intercontinental cup, one Club World Cup, as well
as several Charity/Community Shields.

David Moyes Appointed
Manager of Manchester United

Late in the afternoon of
Thursday 9th May 2013 Everton manager David Moyes was announced as the
successor to Sir Alex Ferguson as the manager of Manchester United. The
50 year old Scot, and former Celtic FC player, was given a six year contract
beginning on the 1st July 2013. As had been speculated it emerged that
Ferguson had been instrumental in the selection of Moyes as his successor.

David Moyes Wins his First
Trophy as Manchester United Manager

Moyes won his first trophy
as the United manager on Sunday 11th August 2013 when the Reds beat Championship
team Wigan athletic in the Community Shield at Wembley. Two goals by Dutch
striker Robin van Persie were enough to secure the first trophy for Moyes.

Moyes Loses His Job as
Manager of Manchester United

Ferguson's selection proved
to be an ill-advised choice as United performed very poorly under the
new manager. On the 22nd of April 2014 the Board terminated his contract
as United languished in 7th position with no chance of qualifying for
Champions League football in the following season. This was despite spending
almost £65m on two high profile transfers of Marouane Fellaini from
Everton and Juan Mata from Chelsea. The final nail in Moyes' coffin was
a 2-0 loss against his former club Everton. This meant that three of United's
North-West rivals, Manchester City, Liverpool, and Everton had beaten
United home and away in the one season. At the time that Moyes lost his
job United had lost an unprecedented 11 Premier League matches in the
one season. With no obvious sign of any improvement in results or performance
the club's owners felt compelled to act.

Ryan Giggs Appointed as
Interim Manager of Manchester United

In a populist move 40 year
old Ryan Giggs was appointed as interim manager of United for the last
four matches of the season. His short reign began with a 4-0 win over
Norwich City at Old Trafford.

Louis Van Gaal Appointed
Manager of Manchester United

On the 19th May 2013 Manchester
United announce that Dutch national team manager, Louis Van Gaal, would
take up role of manager of the club following Holland's participation
in the 2014 World Cup finals. Van Gaal was the first manager of United
from outside of Britain and Ireland. Ryan Giggs, English footballs
most decorated player and the United player with most appearances in the
clubs history, was appointed assistant manager to Van Gaal.

List of Honours Won by Manchester United

It is interesting that
that only five Manchester United managers have ever won major honours
with the club and only three Manchester United managers have ever won
the English League title. This is largely due to the fact that two managers,
Matt Busby and Alex Ferguson, have managed the United for over 50 years
in total.